


We Can Be Alone Together

by UnknownAuthorPerson



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Actually just one but he's more of a reworked character from the original GoLion series, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Angst and Fluff, Borderline Melodrama, Fluff, Just lots of drama, M/M, Original Characters - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-06
Updated: 2016-08-13
Packaged: 2018-07-29 16:18:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,371
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7691269
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UnknownAuthorPerson/pseuds/UnknownAuthorPerson
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Almost a year had gone by since Shiro had disappeared from Keith's life. Now here he stood at his door, drunk, missing an arm, and trying to make amends for the lost time. Keith, on the other hand, is torn between punching him in the face or welcoming him back into his life.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Could We Start Again, Please?

**Author's Note:**

> So I'm gonna be upfront and say that this story is going to dabble into some sensitive subjects, like mental illness, alcoholism, and death, there are going to be some characters that are going to be blunt about these subjects. Just be sure to read with caution and if you don't like how the story is handling it or not comfortable reading about these things, then I understand why you might want not want to read it. 
> 
> So despite the warning, I hope you enjoy this attempt to make a multi-chapter fic.

Rain tapped against his window, staring at the dark sky and low thunder outside as the light from his desk lamp and laptop screen burned the back of his head. He had been lying there for almost an hour after getting to the final chapter of his book and realizing he didn't have an ending. How the hell did he get this far without thinking of an ending for his characters? Where he left it, the two were in a heated battle over the money they had stolen. And that was it. Nothing to end it. 

"Fuck it," Keith said to himself. Getting up from his desk and stretching out his stiff body. The blinking red of his alarm light showed that it was almost 3:00 am and all he wanted was  a drink, the stiffest drink he had at the moment. Walking into his dinky kitchen from his dinky bedroom, turning on the light as it flashed on and off for a moment before completely turning one, illuminating the complete wreck that his apartment. 

Dishes filling up his sink and some still on the lone circular table with two chairs. Liquor and beer bottles overflowing his recycling bin, he shuffled his way to his liquor cabinet, pushing away some forgotten empty bottles that he can't really remember why he left them in there. There was a half empty bottle of whiskey that he grabbed by the neck and opened the top and drank from there. The liquid burned his throat but Keith chugged it down before removing the bottle from his lips, some of the liquor accidently slipping down the side of his lip.

He felt a little looser, a little more free, and a little more relaxed. He let out a large sigh before moving to the table, pushing the dirty plates aside for more room for the bottle and his arm. Keith slouched into the uncomfortable chair as he searched his hoodie pocket for his phone. He had it on silent all day and wondered if he missed anything, turning on and saw only one notification. One from Allura, asking how the manuscript was going. He rolled his eyes and placed the phone face down on the table and took another large chug of his bottle. He could probably finish the bottle tonight and get some more down at the liquor store. It would be good to get away from his laptop and his stupid story. 

Were there even stores still open that late? Hell, he didn't even know what day it was. Picking up the phone and unlocked it -out of habit- and realized he didn't need to. But whatever, he checked the date and saw that it was Saturday, He only had a month and a half before he hit his deadline. Plenty of time to bullshit an ending so Allura wouldn't strangle him for it. How hard was it really? He only had one chapter to go, the last one, the one he had most excited to write, and yet, how should it go?

What was it that Matt told him a long time ago? Write out different endings and see which fit? Yeah, that was something he suggested, something that Keith laughed off at first, but now, it wasn't a bad idea.

Matt...it had been a while since he thought about him, it had been a while he'd even consider anything that he said since his funeral. If anything, he hadn't even thought about Shiro. His chest felt like it was crushing him, leaving him short of breath as Shiro's once smiling face entered his mind, his kind yet intelligent eyes, warm smile, and Matt, dorky glasses, and bright orange hair, but an equally comforting face. He took the bottle and drank the rest of the liquor, any lingering emotion being washed away as his whiskey lifted him back upright until he was out. 

There was still some cheap vodka left and maybe a few beers so it probably wasn't a complete loss, but the whiskey was also the strongest thing he had, how else was he suppose to relax without it? He ran his hands through his greasy hair as he tossed the empty bottle off the table, hearing it roll across the floor and clashed gently with the other bottles. 

Keith just picked up his phone and unlocked it, did he even still have Matt's number? or did he delete it? As he typed in the name, it popped up. The picture of Matt, Shiro, and Keith as the contact picture for his number. Still there, and forcing Keith to actually remember them. 

He remembered that day when they took that picture. It was Katie who took it right after Shiro and Matt graduated with high honors. In the picture Matt had wrapped his arm around Keith as Shiro put his arms around the both for them, placing his head right between their heads. Keith looked like he was trying not to laugh, his eyes on Shiro while he looked at the camera as Matt smiled and held up a typical peace sign, looking unsure of what to do but still smiling. Both Shiro and Matt were in their graduation robes, Shiro had jokingly placed his cap on Keith's head, he was the only one in a simple dress shirt and tie. 

The warm breeze was a little unbearable and the bright sun really exposed how pale Keith was in comparison to Shiro and Matt, but it didn't stop him from smiling from the warmth he felt when he was with those two. Even looking at that stupid picture made him smile, part of him wanted to press call but stopped, knowing that even if he called, no one would answer. He bit his lip as he stared at the picture, they all used this picture as their profile picture in all their phones. It was Shiro's idea, Matt thought it was cute, Keith thought it was just like him to suggest that, but he could never really say no to him. Yet now, despite the glowing nostalgia it brought to him, also began to wring his heart and slowly crushing him from the inside knowing that it can never be like that again. 

Shiro disappeared after the funeral and Katie wanted nothing to do with him, leaving Keith alone and throwing himself into his book. He spent the last 8 months trying to finish it but now, all he was doing was looking at a picture that made him want to cry, creating more built up tension within him. He wanted to shut off his phone, go back to his work, and maybe finish off his liquor cabinet. But he kept staring at it. Remembering how the three of them spent that night celebrating with gifted champagne, plans for the summer, and friendly rock skipping contest between him and Matt, trying to force Shiro to judge who could skip the rocks the farthest. Shiro just told them that they were both winners and to stop being children. 

He only wanted to remember the good things that happened. Yet if he kept looking at that picture, the bad ones were sure to invade his mind. Watching Matt and Shiro walk away from him, the last time the three of them would ever be happy. His hand was shaking and he was biting his lips so hard, that he was surprised that he wasn't going to start drawing blood. But what was he going to do? He went to settings and let his finger hover over the delete button.

He had too, no matter what he just had to get rid of it. He couldn't let himself get tied down to the past like this. It was over, Matt was gone, Shiro was gone, everyone that made him believe he could be happy was gone. So why should he keep holding on to them? Keith gulped just as he was about to tap delete.

Then someone knocked on his door. 

Keith shot up and dropped his phone on the table, looking to the door and getting up. His heart pumping against his chest as he made his way to the door, unlocking it and opening the door.

"Who are you? What do you want?" Keith was irritated, buzzed, and tired, he didn't care who would judge him for it. His heart was caught in his throat as he stared at his long lost friend, Shiro, soaking wet, wearing a black dress shirt, a white tie draped around his neck, the right sleeve was tied into a knot to compensate for his missing right arm. He was leaning against the frame of the door, trying to keep himself stable, yet the most striking things about him were the air of alcohol that radiated from him like he bathed in it before seeing him. 

"Uh...He-hey" He hiccuped in the middle of saying a word, while Keith was just trying to process what was happening. "I um...Yeah so, uhh. I I know-I know that's a really dick move to just ….sh-show up but...umm, wait...Hi, Keith….Has it been a while? How are you?" It was like he was trying to say something to justify this unexpected visit, but Keith, wasn't sure what to do? Close the door and shut him out? Let him in? What could he do? What he did was step away and let Shiro stumble into his apartment, Keith just watched him, stumbling his way to the chair, sat down, and looked at the floor. They didn't say anything, not for a long while. Keith stared at him, multiple emotions running through him. Keith wanted to yell at him, he wanted to hug him close knowing that he was okay after all this time, he wanted to ask where he's been, he wanted to sober him up and then kick him out. There was so much Keith wanted to do to him, but all he could was clench his fists and look at a broken man.

Shiro was hunched over trying to avoid eye contact. There was only one question he really wanted to ask him, something that he hadn't really considered, having given up even seeing him a long time ago, yet here they are now and it couldn't be more perfect.

"Where they hell have you been?" Keith asked, rage and venom slipping out of him in small quantities. He waited for an answer but Shiro didn't provide one, at first. Things were quiet again, and Keith practically planted his feet to the floor, fists still clenched and teeth gritting. "Hey, did you hear me?"

"Yes." Shiro's voice was stern, yet a little shaky. It didn't subside Keith's building rage. 

"Why didn't you call me?" His voice much more venomous as Shiro looked up at him, looking at him with dull eyes and an apologetic face.

"I'm sorry Keith." he just said suddenly, it was all he could say. There were no words that could make amends for what he did. Keith knew that he didn't even try to contact him, no email, no calls, hell not even a handwritten letter taped to his door explaining something. He left him,  _ abandoned  _ him for 8 months. 

Keith walked up to Shiro and gripped the collar of his shirt and lifted him up a little closer to him, seeing the dark circles under his dull eyes. There was fear in them, for only a moment, but Keith didn't care, he just let every angry emotion burst through him and onto Shiro.

"Don't you dare apologize to me. You disappear for 8 months and you expect me to _ forgive you _ ? No, fuck you! You have any idea how worried I was? I called you every day for two months straight! Didn't hear anything from you. I tried to contact you in anyway possible but no you just ignored me! Allura told me to give up and you know what? I actually did! But here you are all of a sudden. And all you can say is I'm sorry? You...you…" He was screaming at this point, every emotion suddenly on display, he didn't look away from him, even when tears formed from his eyes.

"What do you have to fucking say for yourself, Shiro!" Keith was nothing but rage now, crying from frustration and yet some small part of him was strangely overjoyed that of all the places for Shiro to show up, he chose him. He kept the collar of his shirt in his fist, still in between wanting to hug or punch Shiro. 

"You have eve-every right to be mad" Shiro whispered to him, letting the tears fall down his cheeks. Keith didn't even let go, waiting for Shiro to just try and explain himself to him. To justify dropping off the face of the Earth, but he just looked so, pathetic in this moment, the urge to hug him began to overcome any rage he had towards him.

"Keith…" Shiro lifted his left hand to hold his wrist but didn't force him to step away. He just held his hand there, like he was comforting him instead of himself. "I-I'm not asking you to forgive me. I wouldn't even fo-forgive myself...bu-but you deserve so much better t-than that an-and I just wanted to see you, an-and try to let you know I'm sorry, that I didn't tell you what happened or where I went. B-b-but just know, that I'm sorry, I can't ask you to forgive me, hell- I wouldn't be surprised if you hated me, just please, just know t-that I missed you, and you don't deserve how I treated you." 

Shiro was slurring out his words and his eyes, was so sad. Keith just looked at Shiro as his fist loosened his grip on Shiro's shirt and dropped to his side. Still looking at each other, right into their empty eyes. Keith's eyes should be like this, not Shiro, he of all people shouldn't look like this, he wasn't allowed.

"...Weird as it may sound. I don't actually hate you. I should, but I don't." Shiro's face lit up briefly in surprise at Keith's answer. 

"Y-You forgive me?' Shiro sat there, stunned and almost in disbelief about what Keith was saying. He almost didn't believe it himself, but here they were. 

"No." Keith stood his ground but sighed "But I don't hate you Shiro." 

Shiro smiled at him, but Keith just glared at him. He walked to whatever cabinet to see if there was at least one clean cup left, there was, one the way back, plastic red cup, good enough. He turned on the cold water and filled it up and walked back to Shiro and placed it there before heading into his bedroom. 

Keith still had some of Shiro's stuff at his place, from the nights where he and Matt would come over and eventually sleep over. Leaving various things behind, shirts, socks, gym shorts. It didn't really bother him because he did the same thing when he went to Shiro's place. They weren't usually anything important, he rummaged through his drawer to find the oversized t-shirt and a pair of gym shorts that he forgot at his place once, and Keith never bothered to return. He was too lazy to return them to him and yet, in a weird way,  it was good he didn't. It was almost too perfect for this situation. Before leaving the room he grabbed a free towel re-entered the living room, with Shiro drinking his water, still dripping wet from the rain and shivering from the cold. He dropped the clothes on the table and covered Shiro in the towel. Shiro adjusted the towel so it could drape along his shoulders as he started at the clothes before him. 

"Are you gonna need help getting out of your clothes?" Keith said, understanding how wrong it sounded but honestly it was a legit question, he was amazed that Shiro didn't fall over on the way to his place.

"No, I got it." There was a small laugh that came from Shiro, a little weak but Keith could kinda tell he was grateful. He sat down next to him and just watched him. Examining everything that had changed within the last 8 months. Not only was his right arm gone, but it seemed like he dyed part the front of his hair white, again. He looks skinnier like he hadn't eaten in a long time, there were dark circles under his eyes that seemed to dull him, or at least darken any spark of life within him. He almost seemed like a different person, almost.

"Thanks for the water," Shiro said, his left hand shaking a little and his body shivered. They sat in silence for a while. Neither were sure what to say, what to do now that they were in the same place again. Keith just leaned against his seat as Shiro dried his hair and wrapped the towel around his shoulders again. 

Shiro stood up, took the clothes and headed to Keith's bathroom. Still stumbling a little as he walked. Keith sat there, waiting for the door close, so he leaned over and put his head in his hands. All he wanted was to finish his book. Yet here he was again, letting Shiro complicate things for him. When was the last time he was alone with Shiro, that didn't end with him being felt like he was punched in the gut multiple times? That didn't end with him wanting to tell him everything he held inside for so long. How could he still feel like this for so long?

The more he thought about it, the more that rage, sadness, happiness, and regret mixed within him. Merging and waving through him as if he wasn't sure how to feel anymore, it was probably better when there was nothing there. When he could just go through his life and not feel a goddamn thing. But Shiro-even Matt to a similar extent- made him feel something, joy, anger, happiness. Even when they used to do nothing it felt fulfilling. But this? It was too overwhelming, like the longer, he was here, the more emotions were poured into him, that he would explode again, and him having a breakdown was the last thing Shiro needed. The last thing  _ he _ needed.

"H-Hey, you okay?" Keith looked up to Shiro, wearing that oversized shirt and black shorts.

"You look horrible," Keith smirked, Shiro did the same, leaning against his wall for balance.

"Thank you." Shiro laughed a little, like a typical drunk. "But that didn't answer my question."

"I'm fine. But you need some sleep." Keith walked past him to his room and opened the door. 

"I'm not sleeping in your room. I'll sleep on the couch." Shiro tried to move to said couch but Keith grabbed his right shoulder and directed him to his room. 

"You look like you haven't seen a bed in months." Keith guided Shiro along to his room and to his bed. "You've done it before and you can do it again."

"But-"

"Nope, you're not talking your way out of this." He pushed Shiro onto his bed and turned off his computer. "You're in here tonight and I'll be on the couch. You can leave in the morning, but I am not dealing with your massive hangover, _got it?_ "

It was here he realized the roles have switched for the both of them. Usually, it was Keith who was drunk out of his mind and Shiro -only a little buzzed- would be putting him to bed and leave him alone for the rest of the night. Unlike himself, he wasn't so aggressive about it. Sometimes, Shiro would wait beside him until he slept, making sure that he didn't puke or try to do something stupid. 

Shiro just chuckled a little, at him for demanding that he sleeps. It was a little funny but Keith just stared down at him, hoping that he would just do as he said.

"You haven't changed a bit," he said, taking Keith aback a little like he couldn't register what he just said. "Still so forceful."

"Shut up and go to bed." Keith turned his head and looked at the door, walking out but was caught by Shiro's holding his wrist. Keith turned around and forced Shiro to let go of his hand, almost glaring at him to make sure he knew that he meant business.

"What? Need an extra blanket or something? Cause you know I don't have one of those."

"No, I wanted to say thank you," Shiro smiled at him and Keith could feel the tips of his ears burn a little. "For everything." 

"Yeah… ‘night Shiro."

"Goodnight Keith." With that, Shiro finally laid down and Keith closed the door. 

Tears, they flowed down his face he leaned against the door and slid down. He tried to be quiet as bittersweet tears filled his eyes. He couldn't just hold it in anymore, he was bursting and falling apart just at that smile. That goddamned smile of his. That face played back in his mind and he prayed to someone, anyone, that if by some miracle, Shiro would actually not listen to him and be there in the morning. That's all he wanted at that very moment. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just so everyone knows, in this fic, Keith is 21 and Shiro is 24.
> 
> Anyway, there is more to come and we have a lot of explaining to do. Next chapter should be a little more lighthearted, at least in comparison to this one. Unless you didn't find it that heartbreaking or depressing (for whatever reason), to which I say, damn it. But anyway, feel free to give some feedback or whatever.
> 
> Have a good night/day!


	2. Remember That Night

There were a lot of firsts that happened that night. For Keith it was the first night he drank beer,the first time he attended a house party (it was definitely his last) and the first night he met Shiro and Matt. Yet despite everything that happened after that night, he didn’t regret a thing.

His roommate had dragged him to the party at the Phi Alpha Chi, being held by one of the most popular fraternities, in hopes that the two of them could get in. But Keith wanted nothing to do with fraternities, he repeatedly said so, but his words fell on deaf ears. Here he was, his roommate opening the door to a house full of drunken college students; He felt like he inhaled several types of deadly diseases. Not even 4 seconds after entering the party, his roommate already ditched him within the large crowd of people, he was trapped between several people, and all he wanted was to go back to his dorm.

Keith struggled to go through the house of loud chatting, chanting coming from one of the closed rooms and thumping of the bass from the music. He managed to squeeze past the large group and finally made it to the kitchen, there were only one or two people in there drinking beers and laughing, they didn’t seem to notice him either, which was fine with him. All Keith wanted was the free beer.

That was the only point of him coming really so that faster he got one, the faster he could get out of there and never have to deal with people like this ever again. The screams and shouting of the next room scared him for a moment, but he grabbed the beer from the counter and opened it. It was a little warm and definitely cheap beer, but it was better than nothing and who was he to complain about something like that?

He could smell the pot seeping from the walls and already felt a little nauseous. He headed to the nearest exit he could find, making his way to the door and ignoring the two guys whispering about him “Who let mullet kid in here?” “I don’t know, man.”

Yeah, he should've known he would stick out like a sore thumb, especially in places that had more than one person. He closed the door behind him and found himself in the backyard, with a tire swing that swung by the gentle breeze of the night sky. The lawn was littered with pizza boxes, beer cans and bottles, random pieces of garbage and debris. The yard was surrounded by a picket fence that had been spray painted with the fraternity symbol, names of random people and arrows pointing to some of those names calling them bitch or asshole.

Now more than ever did he want to drink. Sitting down on the steps of the porch and took a quick sip from the beer, the warm liquid sours his taste buds and made him shudder. Yet he swallowed and took a bigger drink, faster this time so the taste wouldn’t bother him as much.

“Beautiful night isn’t it?” A voice said to him, Keith looked behind him and saw a tall young man sitting on the steps to join him. He had a tuff of black hair that mismatched his clean cut hair, he was wearing a white long sleeve shirt, black jean pants, and a backpack over his shoulder. He looked even more out of place that Keith did. Yet here he was, with his own beer and a smile on his face.

“Yeah…”

“Couldn’t stand it in there either?” The tall man asked as he opened his beer.

“Nah, honestly I hate parties.” Keith took another sip from his beer and scrunched his face as the aftertaste overcame him. “But at least the beer is free.”

“Of course. Who doesn’t like free beer?” The man laughed has he chugged back his beer and crushed it with his hand, throwing the can behind him at an unused recycling bin. But the can only hit the side of the house and bounced off the rim of the bin and onto the ground. Keith just laughed at the man's disappointed face.

“Nice shot.” He snarked at him.

“Thank you,” The man chuckled a bit, it was a nice laugh. “But I’m guessing you can do better?”

Keith just smirked at him, as if he took his challenged and he attempted to chug the beer but some of it seemed to get stuck in his throat and choked, spitting most of it out and coughing. Smooth.

“Holy sh- Are you okay?” The man asked, touching his back and making sure he wasn’t choking. Keith just nodded his head and wiped his mouth, his face flushed from the embarrassment. He wasn’t even drunk and already making a fool of himself.

“I’m fine.” Keith pulled away from the man and faced away from him. What was he thinking? He just wanted to finish his drink and take a shot at the bin, but now he was covered in liquid and looked like an idiot. He expected the guy to start laughing at him, but he didn’t and touched his shoulder instead.

“You shouldn’t be trying to chug it if you’re not used to it.” He reassured him,

“Why do you care?” Keith continued to look away, face still burning red and waiting for the man to laugh.

“Cause I did the same thing when I was pledging and got hazed badly for it.” He reassured. “Was not my most shining moment. Then again I was pretty stupid my freshman year.”

Keith looked at him, him? Phi Alpha member? How the hell did that happen? He looked like he hadn’t even left his room until now. Yet him? Was that even possible?

“You...a member here?” Keith asked, this time, the taller man actually laughed this time, but not at him, which was kinda a relief.

“Oh god no, not anymore anyway. Well, I pledged but I didn’t even last a semester.” He patted him on the shoulder as Keith’s face flushed a little. He could feel the corners of his lips twitch a little and turn into a smile. The man seemed to glow slightly, that or Keith was more of a lightweight than he worried about. The man took his hand away from Keith’s shoulder and held out his right hand to him.

“Takashi Shirogane, but friends call me Shiro.” Keith looked at the hand and lifted his left to shake his.

“Keith, uh Keith Kogane.” He smiled. They shook hands but held on a little longer than they should have, but Keith let go first and adjusted himself a little.

“A pleasure meeting you, Keith.” The way he said his name, sent a small shiver up his spine, it was warm, welcoming, like he actually was happy to see him. Either that or he was the world’s worst light weight after one beer, or he was letting this kind man -Takashi- get to him already. God, he was pathetic sometimes.

“ _'A pleasure meeting you?’_ What are you, forty?” Keith laughed and Takashi laughed with him.

“Yeah, I know. Really annoys my friend Matt sometimes. He actually calls me old man.” They continued to laugh together, it was comforting. He hadn’t really laughed like that in a long while, like an old feeling that resonated within him once again. This Takashi guy, there was something about him. They had only been talking for two, maybe three minutes and already he wanted to leave with him, to go somewhere they could talk and just be that, comfortable. But that wasn’t what life had in store for him. Instead, Takashi stopped laughing and looked behind him and stood up. Keith followed his gaze and saw two of the frat brothers arguing with one another. One had his shirt off while the other looked like he was wearing an old football jersey and a trucker hat. Classy.

“Oh no. Looks like this is gonna get messy.” Takashi said exhaustion in his voice like he’s seen this happen before. Keith watched as the two guys started pushing each other before shirtless frat brother punched trucker hat frat brother. Takashi tapped his shoulder and Keith looked to him.

“We need to get out of here, my friend is gonna meet us out front.” Takashi practically commanded him. The sheer determination on his face made Keith’s heart stop for a short moment before he started to walk away and Keith followed behind. They walked along the small gap between the house and the fence, just enough so the two didn’t have to squeeze in or against the house. Worse was Keith could hear the crashing within the house and people cheering, yelling, some names being screamed, others demanding blood, and the crashing of glass and furniture. They made it to the front before something smashed, they turned back and saw that someone threw a chair at the window. Keith just couldn’t believe what he was seeing, was this really happening?

“SHIRO!” A voice yelled, Keith and Takashi looked and saw a mousy looking guy with round glasses and short orange hair. He grabbed Takashi’s right arm and pulled “We got to get out of here now. Things are escalating way too fast!”

All three began to run as another crash could be heard, the last thing Keith heard was someone yell. “I’M GONNA FUCKING MURDER YOU!” as they ran down the street, leaving the distant noise of shouting and cheering. At that moment, all Keith could do was keep up with Takashi. The three turned a corner and continued to run down the street, both Keith and Matt just following Takashi, who was making sure they were still behind him by looking back at them. They stopped and ran across the street to the public park, finally stopping as they heard sirens go by and all trying to catch their breaths.

The three of them collapsed on the park bench, all three of them breathing hard and all Keith could think was how that was the most cardio he had done in his life. His heart was beating fast against his chest.

“You see this is why we shouldn’t go to frat parties anymore.” Matt huffed out as he leaned over. Takashi just huffed and puffed along with Matt, Keith just stared at the two of them, two strangers he ran away with on a whim. Then he looked at Takashi and smiled, glad that for once, his impulse sent him in the right direction.

“This was your idea, Matt,” Takashi said in between his huffing and puffing, trying to catch his breath. Keith didn’t say anything just looking up at the sky and replaying the events that led to this point in his mind, of all the things that could've happened to him tonight, this was not one of them. If anything this was a best case scenario that he never thought would happen.

“I'm Matt, by the way.” Keith looked at the extended hand of the red-haired kid next to him, He smiled a small smile, Keith took his hand and shook it.

“I-I'm Keith.”

“Nice to meet you.” He said before turning to Shiro “He was at the party too?”

“Apparently.” was all he could say, looking up at the sky and still trying to catch his breath.

“Is that a problem?” Keith asked, and Matt turned back to look at him, almost a little scared.

“No, it’s just that, you don’t look like a person who would go to places like that,” Matt explained and laughed. “Then again, Shiro and I weren’t suppose to be there either.”

“Then what were you doing there?” Keith asked. Matt smiled and Takashi dropped the bag on the ground and Matt opened it up to reveal an entire bag of stolen beer, there was even ice pack to keep them cold. Matt took one out, handed that to Takashi, one for himself, and offered one to him. Keith took it as Matt and Shiro opened their beers with the hissing of air escaped the cans and clinked them together.

Keith just stared in disbelief, did these two men, just go to a frat party to steal their beer? All the while looking like they spent their Saturday nights studying at home. With Matt’s green plaid shirt, black slacks and Takashi with his ‘good boy’ vibes. They looked clean and almost picturesque, yet they were reveling in their stolen goods like typical troublemakers you get to know in high school. It was kinda amazing, in an odd way.

“I’m surprised we got away without anyone knowing what we were up to,” Takashi said before taking a long drink from his beer as Matt did the same.

“Yeah, they need to be more protective of their secret stash if they don’t want people raiding them.” Matt raised his can and smiled at Takashi “A toast to a successful raid, my accomplice.”

Takashi lifted his can of beer, smiling and looked at Keith, still staring at them, stunned.

“Something wrong?”

“You guys...are amazing,” Keith said in astonishment. Takashi and Matt stared at him and at each other before they started to chuckle a little, Matt looking more bashful than Takashi, who was charmed by his words.

“What this?” Matt motioned to the bag of beers. “We were just taking free beer because we’re broke.”

“If I recall it was also because one of them was being an asshole to you, so you wanted to take _‘something precious’_ from them” Takashi smirked at him while Matt got really flustered.

“Like I said, we just took the free beer. No ulterior motives here.” Matt said as he playfully punched Takashi on the shoulder. He looked at Keith, who had just been sipping his beer, trying not to make the same mistake as before.

“But you look less like a guy who would be hanging out with those assholes. Why were you there?”

“...My roommate dragged me there, even though I kept telling him I’m no good at parties.” Keith took another sip from his drink “Also free beer.”

There was a small moment of silence between the three of them before Takashi -Shiro- started to laugh, soon both Matt and Keith laughed with him. Nothing was particularly funny, but the idea that all three were there for a similar reason, only for it for them to get out of a fight that escalated into a possible all out brawl. Was actually kinda amusing.

The three laughed and laughed until they couldn’t even remember why they were laughing, it wasn’t really that funny, but as they calmed down Keith found himself actually enjoying himself. It was an uplifting feeling that he hadn’t felt in a very long time. With Shiro and Matt, he was glad he decided to run off when he did. Otherwise, he would probably in the backseat of a cop car just for being there. But here, it felt good to laugh at nothing with two strangers he just met.

That night was the start of their friendship, but that was 3 - almost 4- years ago, And things had changed for them so much since those early days.

* * *

Keith hated it when he couldn’t remember falling asleep, especially when he knows he didn’t fall asleep in one spot. He knew he was asleep on the floor outside of his own room, but now he was on the couch with a blanket and pillow. The sun was peaking out from behind the closed curtains, there were sizzling and popping coming from the kitchen, there was the wafting smell of freshly brewed coffee and toast.

God damn Shiro.

He slowly got up from his couch and saw Shiro standing over his stove and cooking scrambled eggs, two plates were set on the table. Keith just blinked before the world could really be clear, Shiro didn’t change out of the clothes he gave him last night. Keith didn’t get off the couch, almost happy to know that Shiro visiting him wasn’t a dream.

“Afternoon, Keith.” Shiro greeted him, only glancing over his shoulder and then back to the eggs.

“The hell are you doing?” Keith mumbled, still trying to wake up and ignore the growling in his stomach that called for Shiro’s food.

“Cooking,” Shiro said as bluntly as he could.

“I can see that but why?” Keith didn’t move, sitting there, trying to understand Shiro’s hospitality. While he was glad he was still in his apartment, there was still the angering issue of the sudden visit after Shiro’s long absences.

Shiro didn’t answer at first, he shut off the stove and took the frying pan, all with his left hand and almost like he did it in one motion. He brought the frying pan to the plates and tapped it so the eggs fell onto one plate, doing the same to the other. The eggs spilled out sloppily and onto the plate but Shiro didn’t seem to care. He went back and re-added the pan to the pile of dishes that were still in Keith’s sink.

“You don’t have to do this,” Keith said he noticed Shiro’s whole body tensed as he faced away from him. He didn’t move for a moment, looking at the pile of dirty dishes.

“I know.” Was all Shiro could say before going for the toast that had just popped out of the toaster. Keith watched as Shiro prepared the toast with one arm, like a pro, yet still struggling to remember he had only the one. He noticed that his right shoulder would move as if to grab something, only for Shiro to adjust and use his left hand instead. He took the knife and cut the bread. “Hope you don’t mind a basic breakfast, you didn’t really have that much stuff and I didn’t want to go out and buy anything without your permission so, we’re stuck with this.”

Keith couldn’t really say anything, waiting for Shiro to place the slices of toast on the plates and sat down at the table. Taking the fork and began to eat. He didn’t move, he couldn’t remember if he could, he was stunned and amazed at Shiro. He had some nerve doing this for him, but then again it was so like him to cook breakfast after what happened last night.

He finally got up from the couch and walked past Shiro to get the fresh coffee. There were two cups near the coffee pot, because of course there was, he took the one closest to the machine and poured himself a cup.

“Do you want some?” Keith asked him, knowing that he probably was festering a monster of a hangover.

“If you don’t mind.”

“Just so you know it’s gonna be black. I don’t have much else,” Keith said as he poured the rest of the coffee into Shiro’s cup.

“I’m aware.” Shiro was getting quieter the more he spoke and it made Keith wonder if it was because of how non-confrontational he was. While he was still mad at him, he had no more energy to take it out on his friend. So he served Shiro his coffee and sat down at his table, to enjoy his basic breakfast with him. Almost like old times.

They ate in silence, slowly eating, drinking their coffee, and avoiding talking to each other. The only noises made was the crunch of them biting into their toast, Keith slurping his coffee, and Shiro poking his eggs. What was there to say to each other? How do you even start a normal conversation after an 8-month disappearance? Was there anything to say?

Keith kept on eating, looking at the food in front of him and trying to ignore that Shiro was right next to him. Wasn’t even going to try to talk to him just yet, instead, he thought of different ways this could go. They could keep eating, Shiro would get dressed and leave, never to be seen again. They talk and everything works out. Keith could ask Shiro where he’s been and have Shiro dance around the question, but he was more direct than that, well at least he used to be. Who knows how much Shiro had changed, beyond physical appearance, within the last 8 months.

Maybe he could just walk him home, but could he trust himself alone with Shiro in this state? Could he trust himself not to lose control again, like last night? There were so many ways this could begin and end, but for Keith, none of these situations ended good, all of the scenarios that Keith came up with ended with Shiro leaving his life again, and staying out of it. But would he be okay with that?

“I’m sorry,” Shiro said, poking his eggs. Keith stopped eating and only glanced at him, he was so focused on what might happen that he probably should have tried to think of how Shiro would start the conversation. “For, what I put you through. You were the last person I wanted to hurt and I did anyway.”

Keith waited for him to continue, watching as Shiro’s face became saddened by what he was about to say.

“I know you said you wouldn’t forgive me and I said I was fine with that, but I just...wanted to make amends, for what a shitty person I’ve become. I wish that I handled things differently, but I was in such a terrible state of mind, that I didn’t think about you, or Katie, or even Ryou and how I was hurting all of you.” Shiro finally looked Keith in the eyes, still dull and sleep deprived, where Keith blinked a few times, not sure how to respond. The worst part about Shiro was how sincere he was, even 8 months late for an apology and Keith still wanted to forgive him.

But he couldn’t, As much as he still cared for Shiro on some level. He needed answers, he needed to know why he hadn’t called him. It just wasn’t like him run away like that, to avoid people and not talk to anyone. Why was he so willing to talk now?

“Just tell me what happened to you and maybe I’ll consider forgiveness.” He deserved to know what his friend had been up to. Shiro inhaled deeply before speaking again, putting down his fork.

“Do you want the long answer or short answer?”

“Whichever one you think will satisfy me.” Keith leaned back in his seat as Shiro took a long and deep breath before explaining.

“Alright, short answer it is then.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some backstory for this chapter and more story development. There was one scene I was hoping to include in this chapter, it involved Pidge and some bonding by the river but I decided to save that for another time. Hopefully after the next chapter.  
> Despite all that, I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I hope you all have a good day/night.


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